Martin Wegner: Third place in the mayoral election – what comes next?

Martin Wegner: Third place in the mayoral election – what comes next?

There was great excitement at yesterday's mayoral election in Ludwigshafen, which took place on September 21, 2025. Many voters flocked to the 144 polling stations, which were open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. In the end there was a neck-and-neck race between Klaus Blettner from the CDU/FWG and Jens Peter Gotter from the SPD. Blettner received 41.2 percent of the vote, while Gotter was just behind him with 35.5 percent. The voter turnout was 29.3 percent, below that of the last mayoral election in 2017, when it was 34.8 percent, as documented by the city of Ludwigshafen ludwigshafen.de.

Martin Wegner, the non-party candidate, was not discouraged and received 15.7 percent of the vote, which brought him third place. However, this was not enough for the runoff election, which must take place on October 12, 2025, as none of the candidates was able to win an absolute majority. Wegner was still at six percent in a survey in May, which shows that he had gained momentum in the election campaign. His election party took place in Hemingway's home base, where he celebrated with his supporters rheinpfalz.de.

Other candidates and the election conditions

In addition to Blettner, Gotter and Wegner, there was also Michaela Schneider-Wettstein from Volts, who received 7.6 percent of the vote. The counting was exciting for everyone involved, especially since the city had 122,000 people eligible to vote. By midday, over 24,000 voters had already cast their votes, many of them by postal vote. This illustrates the increased interest in this election compared to previous years tagesschau.de.

Politics in Ludwigshafen is in transition. Jutta Steinruck from the SPD, the last incumbent, did not run again due to the difficult budget situation. Their withdrawal leaves a vacuum that the new candidates are trying to fill. The discussion about the candidacy of the AfD candidate Joachim Paul, who was excluded by the election committee, is also of interest to voters, especially since urgent applications against this decision were rejected.

The challenge for voters

In the coming weeks, voters will decide who should lead their city through the next challenges. With the threat of a runoff election, the two leading candidates are showing that the people of Cologne can make a real statement by casting their votes in the decisive election. It remains to be seen which issues will come to the fore and how voters will be influenced. A good reason for citizens to get actively involved in political discussions and to set the course for the future of Ludwigshafen.